The Hanwha Eagles lost their second-place position to the Lotte Giants again in just one day. It was a day when the batting lineup finally came alive, but the mound could not withstand Lotte's firepower.

Hanwha lost 6-8 in extra innings after a 10-inning match at Hanwha Life Ballpark in Daejeon against Lotte in the 2025 Shinhan SOL Bank KBO League on the 24th. Although they had risen to second place with a comeback victory of 4-2 against Lotte the previous day (23rd), they lost it again in just one day.

It was not an easy game. Starting pitcher Ryu Hyun-jin struggled against Lotte's persistent contact, allowing three runs from two hits in the second inning and three hits in the third inning, all singles. However, he held on without additional runs through the fifth inning, finishing with 5 innings, 7 hits allowed, 1 walk, and 3 earned runs.

In the meantime, the batting lineup finally came alive. In the third inning, Hanwha scored 3 runs to tie the game at 3-3 with three hits and one walk, combining with a fielding error by the opponent. In the fifth inning, they took the lead with two home runs. After Estevan Florial's solo shot, Chae Eun-seong hit a two-run home run, making it 6-3. The 6 runs scored were the most Hanwha had in the last 10 games.

Ryu Hyun-jin had met the conditions for a win, but after a 39-minute delay due to rain during the sixth inning, the momentum shifted. After the game resumed with one out and a runner on first in the sixth inning, it ended without additional runs, and in the seventh inning, setup man Park Sang-won struggled by hitting lead-off batter Yoo Kang-nam with a pitch. He then allowed a double to Son Ho-young, leading to a crisis with no outs and runners on second and third before being pulled from the game.

Left-handed batter Jang Du-seong faced lefty Kim Beom-Su, but he hit a two-RBI single up the middle to narrow the gap to one run. During this play, center fielder Florial made a catching error that allowed Jang Du-seong to advance an additional base. To make matters worse, Go Seung-min's hard-hit ball hit first baseman Chae Eun-seong on the left collarbone and deflected into an infield single, creating a crisis with no outs and runners on first and third. Chae Eun-seong, who attempted to block the two-bounce ball with his body, complained of pain and was replaced by defensive substitute Kim In-hwan, immediately moving to the hospital for X-rays.

The game was flowing strangely. Kim Beom-Su struck out Víctor Reyes with a swinging strikeout, overcoming a critical moment. With one out and runners on first and third, Hanwha brought in Han Seung-hyeok. Han Seung-hyeok induced an infield ground ball from Jeon Jun-woo with a first-pitch slider, but the poorly hit ball slowly rolled down the first base foul line. Han Seung-hyeok managed to field the ball in a difficult position and threw to first base for the ground out, but the runner from third crossed home, tying the game at 6-6. This was an unfortunate moment for Hanwha.

Han Seung-hyeok pitch a total of 1⅔ innings with 3 strikeouts and no runs until the eighth, while closer Kim Seo-hyeon pitched a scoreless ninth inning, leading to extra innings. However, in the 10th inning, Kim Jong-soo allowed a leadoff single to Na Seung-yeop and committed a balk, putting runners on second without outs. After walking Jeon Min-jae after a 9-pitch battle and continuing with runners on second and third after Yoo Kang-nam's sacrifice bunt, Son Ho-young hit a two-RBI single up the middle, giving up the winning run. Hanwha's lineup was also shut down by the Lotte bullpen after the sixth inning without scoring additional runs.

On this day, Hanwha used a total of 7 relief pitchers, including starting pitcher Ryu Hyun-jin, Ju Hyun-sang (1 inning, no runs), Park Sang-won (0 innings, 2 runs), Kim Beom-Su (⅓ inning, 1 run), Han Seung-hyeok (1⅔ inning, no runs), Kim Seo-hyeon (1 inning, no runs), Kim Jong-soo (⅓ inning, 2 runs), and Cho Dong-uk (⅔ inning, no runs). It was disappointing to lose even after using all available pitchers from the bullpen, except for rookie Jeong Woo-joo. Since Kim Seo-hyeon pitched two consecutive games, he is likely to rest for the game on the 25th.

It was a painful loss, but there was also some good news amid the misfortune. Chae Eun-seong, who was substituted after being hit on the collarbone by a hard-hit ball, received a contusion diagnosis from the X-ray examination, avoiding a serious injury. Chae Eun-seong, who recorded a multi-hit day with a double and a home run, has begun his characteristic surge with 3 home runs in 5 games this week. If the injury had been severe, it could have dealt a significant blow to Hanwha, but with a contusion diagnosis, they breathed a sigh of relief.

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